Donald Trump to meet Pak PM Imran on Monday, PM Modi on Tuesday in New York
Washington, Sep 21: US President Donald Trump will meet Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan on Monday, a day after he joins Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the mega "Howdy Modi" event in Houston and will again hold a meeting with the Indian leader in New York on Tuesday, a senior official has said.
Both the meetings with the leaders of India and Pakistan would be held in New York on the sidelines of the 74th session of the UN General Assembly, a senior administration official told reporters on Friday in a preview of Trump's engagements in the Big Apple next week.
Trump is expected to arrive in New York on Sunday night after his participation with Modi at the "Howdy Modi" event in Houston where the two leaders will address over 50,000 Indian-Americans.
The US president will then travel to Ohio where he will be joined by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison.
"President Donald J Trump will be travelling to Houston for 'Howdy Modi: Shared Dreams Bright Futures' event. That will be the day wherein he will travel on to Ohio where he will be joined by Prime Minister Morrison of Australia where they will visit Pratt industry and celebrate US economic relationship with Australia," the official said.
On Monday (September 23), the first day of his stay in New York on the sidelines of the UN General Assembly session, Trump's first event will be the global call to protect religious freedom, the official said, describing it as a key event.
"After that the President is scheduled to meet with the following leaders. Prime Minister Khan of Pakistan, President (Andrzej Sebastian) Duda of Poland, Prime Minister (Jacinda) Arden of New Zealand, Prime Minister Lee (Hsien Loong) from Singapore, President al Sisi of Egypt and President Moon of S Korea," said the official who spoke on condition of anonymity.
On Tuesday (September 24), Trump will deliver his address to the UN General Assembly. After that, he will hold a number of bilateral meetings.
"Prime Minister (Boris) Johnson of United Kingdom, Prime Minister Modi of India, the UN Secretary General," the official said, adding that the president will also meet his Iraqi counterpart and end the day with a diplomatic reception.
With Modi-Trump meeting on Tuesday, the two leaders would be meeting for the fourth time in as many months. The meeting in New York is expected to set the tone of bilateral relationship between the two countries over the next few years.
The two leaders are likely to discuss a range of bilateral, regional and global issues, including efforts to address the growing bilateral trade disputes, potential defence and energy deals and peace process in Afghanistan.
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Delay in land acquisation of 3341 hectares halting railway development in Karnataka: Vaishnaw
Mangaluru: Several major railway projects in Karnataka have come to a halt due to delays in land acquisition by the state government, even as the Centre has sharply increased funds for railway development in the state.
According to a report published by The New Indian Express on Friday, in a written reply to the Lok Sabha, Railway Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said Karnataka needs 9,020 hectares of land for various railway projects, of which 63% (5,679 ha) has been acquired, while 3,341 ha is still pending.
Dharwad–Belagavi via Kittur new line (73 km), taken up under a 50:50 cost-sharing agreement with the state. The project has made no progress reportedly, because the required land has not been handed over. As per the agreement, land is to be provided free of cost by the state.
The other projects facing significant delays due to land acquisition include 333 ha pending for Shimoga–Rannebennur new line (96 km), as per the report, 581 ha pending for Belgaum–Dharwad new line (73 km), 488 ha pending for Shimoga–Harihar new line (79 km), 337 ha pending for Whitefield–Kolar new line (53 km), and 206 ha pending for Hassan–Belur new line (32 km).
Vaishnaw allegedly said that timelines depend on factors such as land acquisition, statutory clearances, forest permissions, utility shifting, topographical challenges and law and order conditions, all of which can affect both cost and time.
The minister pointed out that added that while the Centre is prepared to move fast, progress depends heavily on the support and cooperation of the state government.
The minister pointed out that annual outlay for Karnataka has risen from Rs 835 crore per year during 2009–14 to Rs 7,564 crore in 2025–26, an increase of more than nine times.
According to the report, as of April 1, 2025, Karnataka has 25 sanctioned projects including 15 new lines and 10 doubling works covering 3,264 km and costing Rs 42,517 crore, fall completely or partly within Karnataka. Of these, 1,394 km have been commissioned so far, with an expenditure of Rs 21,310 crore.
Recently completed works include the Kottur–Harihar, Hassan–Bengaluru, Bidar–Gulbarga lines and several doubling projects in Shivamogga, Bengaluru, Mangaluru, Arsikere and Hubballi regions.
As per the report, major ongoing projects such as the Hospet–Hubli–Londa–Vasco doubling, Hotgi–Gadag doubling and new lines like Gadag–Wadi, Bagalkot–Kudachi, Tumkur-Rayadurga and Tumkur–Davangere continue to progress, the minister said.
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